Communique issued at the end of the 2nd Biennal conference of Majors Superiors Ghana at the Catholic Pastoral and Training Centre in Koforidua from the 11th to 14th October, 2022
Greetings
Grace and Peace from Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God and the Communion of the Holy Spirit be with you and sustain us all in these trying moments.
Preamble
We, members of the Conference of Major Superiors met in Koforidua from the 11th to the 14th of October 2022 for our Bi-annual conference and deliberated on issues bothering on the growth of the Conference, our missionary commitment and the state of the Church in Ghana as well as on the socio-cultural context in which we live and work. We also elected a new leadership team to steer the affairs of the Conference for the next two years.
We are grateful to God for a fruitful meeting and for the new leadership team he has given to us. We thank the new team for making themselves available for service. We trust in their ability and pray for God’s guidance and protection in the discharge of their duty. We thank in a special way the outgoing team led by Sr. Mercy Boateng, SSL for the marvellous work they did for the Conference and the strong foundation they laid. God bless them in their new endeavours.
We appreciate the warm welcome we received from the host diocese and the local Ordinary, Most Rev. Joseph Agyekum Afrifa who was ably represented by the Vicar General Rev. Monsignor Francis Twum-Barimah. Our sincere gratitude to His Excellency Most Rev. Henryk M. Jagodziński, the Apostolic Nuncio to Ghana who gave the keynote address for his presence and insightful message.
WHO WE ARE
The Conference of Major Superiors Ghana comprises of leaders of Consecrated Men and Women Congregations in the Catholic Church who strive to witness to the love of God through evangelisation and charitable work for the poor and the most vulnerable in society. The ultimate goal is to be like Christ in the socio-cultural context in which evangelisation is carried out. Thus, Consecrated persons are invited to influence society actively through evangelisation and social interventions.
Primacy of God
The focus of every consecrated person is to be Christ-like and to devote his or her life totally to the affairs of the Lord in his or her celibate state as attested by St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 7:33-34. This is what makes the Church to affirm that “The life consecrated through the profession of the evangelical counsels is a stable form of living by which the faithful, following Christ more closely under the action of the Holy Spirit, are totally dedicated to God.” (Can. 573§1).
The mandate of the Lord Jesus to make disciples of all nations (cf. Mt. 28:19) enjoins on consecrated persons to lead by word and example, the positive sign of evangelisation. Consecrated Men and Women have been at the forefront of the Church’s evangelisation drive since the arrival of the first SMA missionaries in Elmina in 1880. The recent national census and the percentage decrease in Catholic population in Ghana is therefore a wake up call to all Consecrated person. It is a call to take the challenge of the new evangelisation seriously.
In this new evangelisation outreach we are available to partner with the Catholic Bishops Conference of Ghana and individual Bishops and Pastors of souls in reviewing our current methods of evangelisation and seeking new ways in the light of current social cultural realities of the country. Of special mention is the outreach to the Youth, especially those in secondary and Tertiary levels of education where a more robust and effective spiritual formation programme is needed.
One other area of attention is to increase the visibility and proximity of our presence, especially of our churches. We enjoin all Major Superiors to make their communities and institutions more visible to the public and make their presence as Consecrated Persons felt by those around them as a way of inviting others to the joy of knowing the Lord. Our Catholic schools and hospitals are famous and known as arena of discipline. This should be replicated in our Churches and in our communities so that they may be known as spiritual centres of salvation and solace in a world full of trauma and deceit.
ON THE SYNODAL PATH
Every Christian is invited to journey towards God. It has both the individual aspect as well as the communal aspect. To foster effective evangelisation in the Church as announced by the Holy Father Pope Francis: “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission”, the Conference has been engaging other stakeholders towards its realisation and implementation. The Conference is inviting all the diocesan chapters of Consecrated Persons to celebrate the next Feast of Consecrated Life under the theme: “Unity in Diversity, Synodally.” Although we have different Charisms from the Holy Spirit through our founders, the goal is the same, that of building up the Body of Christ the Church. We all are called by Jesus Christ towards the Beatific Vision – seeing Christ face to face. In this journey nobody should be excluded. We also encourage every Congregation to celebrate their own Synodality within their communities and Provinces as invited by the Holy Father.
Protecting Our Common Home
We were privileged and grateful to receive some input on the impact of illegal mining popularly known as Galamsey on our environment by the Regional Director of the Environmental Protection Agency, Koforidua. We were simply horrified by what we saw and heard. We condemn in the strongest possible terms all those involved in this shameful, despicable and destructive activities, whoever they may be. We were most shocked to learn that the recent increase in ritual killings and child kidnapping may have some link to increase in Galamsey activities. What are we becoming as a people? What devilish spirit of wealth accumulation and “get rich quick” no matter the cost has possessed us?
- We want to use this opportunity to express our unflinching support to the fight against Illegal Mining, a.k.a Galamsey. We commend the Catholic Bishops’ Conference, the Christian Council, journalists and media groups, civil society organisations, Chiefs, Youth groups and all those who have taken a stand against the menace that is threatening our very existence as a nation and paints a gloomy picture of the future. The culture of silence must stop.
The time has come for all of us to wake up and mobilise to stop this evil and nation wrecker. Pope Francis through his encyclical letter ‘Laudato Si, following in the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi, the Patron Saint of Ecology, warns us of the catastrophic consequences of destroying the environment, our common home. We are aware as a Conference that issuing communiqués and condemnations may not necessarily stop the Galamsey. However, it adds to the voices already out there calling for a halt to the illegal activity.
As people of faith we believe that “Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labour in vain” (Ps 127:1). The Conference has therefore composed a Prayer against Illegal Mining and Destruction of the environment. We urge our members and all people of faith to join us in seeking from the Lord of all creation forgiveness for the harm we have caused to our environment through our actions and inactions. We pray also for the Spirit of power and fortitude so that with one accord and a common resolve we can win the fight against Galamsey.
We invite government, the law enforcement agencies and the Law courts to make the laws of the country work, without fear or favour. We believe also that it would require a grand coalition of well meaning Ghanaians, civil society groups, professional bodies, religious and traditional groups as well as the media to come together to protect our common home and secure our future destiny. We are prepared therefore to network and partner with similar minds in this fight for the good of our motherland.
To stop this evil, we invite every citizen of this country to revisit our patriotic song of Yen Ara Asase Ni (This is our land). It should be a constant anthem on all media platforms and taught once again from Pre-school to the Tertiary level: Yen Ara Asase Ni
This is our own cherished land, acquired through
the blood our ancestors shed for us.
It is now our turn to continue what our ancestors started.
Pride, cheating and selfishness have scarred our character,
and diminished our affection for our land.
Whether or not this nation prospers,
Depends on the character of the citizens of the nation.Bragging of educational achievements, empty boasting,
and vain talk are destroying our nation.
Hard work and respect for one another are what we need.
Selflessness and compassion for one another
will bring peace and prosperity to our nation.Whether or not this nation prospers,
Depends on the character of the citizens of the nation.
It is our hope that soon and very soon, with our collective efforts we shall begin to see clean water bodies once again and our forest green and flourishing.
Working for Social Inclusion and Job Creation
The Conference is aware that Galamsey is also a source of livelihood for many otherwise unemployed youth and vulnerable people in our communities. These may not be the main beneficiaries of this illegal activities. It is therefore imperative for stakeholders to provide alternative means of livelihood for them. This is why the Conference is also actively engaged in social transformation activities.
In collaboration with our partners our members are actively engaged in eradicating illiteracy most especially in the northern sector of the country through the programme: “Strengthening the Capacity of Women Religious in Early Childhood Development”. Furthermore, the Conference is embarking on a project to train 300 youth and vulnerable persons between the ages of 15 and 30, including persons with disability through the Skills Training Project (STP). The STP project not only gives the training but completes it with start up tools and equipment to allow successful trainees to start their own business.
Moreover, inline with our commitment as Consecrated persons dedicated to liberating the human person from all forms of oppression the Conference is engaged in the fight against modern day slavery in the form of human trafficking. The Conference through its project Talitakum has been organising advocacy programmes through its network of stakeholders in helping to stop the canker. Through Talitakum hundreds of young girls and boys have been rescued from their captors who deceive them of non existent lucrative jobs abroad. We invite everyone not to look on unconcerned but report any form of human trafficking to Talitakum or the Police. In fact, human trafficking is the worst form of human exploitation. It dehumanizes the victim and we must join hands to stop it. You never know when the victim may be your sister or brother.
Furthermore, our Justice, Peace and Integrity of creation (JPIC) network in collaboration with Africa Faith abd Justice Nerwork (AFJN) is working with local communuties againat land grapping by multinationals. Our aim is to protect the livelihood of ordinary Ghanaians who find themselves dispossed of their ancestral lands. We call on government agencies especially District Assemblies and the Ministry of Local Government to take the phenomena of land grapping seriously and protect local communuties from this menance.
APPRECIATION
We would like to reiterate our gratitude to all those who made it possible for us to have a successful conference. The organising committee, the staff and management of the Catholic Pastoral and Training Centre, Koforidua. We thank all those who made time to address the Conference, most especially His Excellency Most Rev. Henryk M. Jagodziński, the Apostolic Nuncio to Ghana, Bishop Joseph Agyekum Afrifa represented by the Vicar General Rev. Monsignor Francis Twum-Barimah, Mr. Felix Addo Kyireh, Regional Director of EPA, representatives of NARF, ARUG, the Pastoral Department of NCS. We are grateful to our partners, ASEC, Catholic Relief Service, AFJN and Conrad Hilton Foundation. We pray God’s blessings on you all.
Conclusion
As a Conference we are grateful to God for how far he has brought us. We rededicate ourselves to witnessing to the coming of the Kingdom of God, a kingdom of Truth and Life, a kingdom of Holiness and Grace, a kingdom Justice, Love and Peace. We invite all persons of goodwill to join us in making this Kingdom a reality in Ghana today. As the firstborn son of Africa’s liberation struggle, the Black Star, Ghana has a divine mission to fulfil: To be a symbol of hope, a pace setter and a champion of excellence for Africa and people of African descent. Together and with the help of God we can live up to this calling.
May the Lord bless us all and make our nation great and strong.
Very Rev. Fr. (Dr) Paul Saa-Dade Ennin, SMA
President of the Conference
